The difficulty with empire arises in part because empires often make totalizing claims. They claim to exert complete sovereignty. They claim unrivaled power. They claim to know best. They have the means to accomplish their will regardless of what anyone else thinks. They demand allegiance. They sanction their actions with religious talk (“God bless America”). They cannot tolerate dissent.
From the postscript of “The Roman Empire and the New Testament” by Warren Carter
WHOOOOOOOAAAAAA, considering the entire book is about the political aspect of the New Testament vs. the claims of the Roman Empire… hehehe… totally the most INTERESTING thing I’ve read all day!
